OBJECTIONS & ANSWERS

TO CALLING OUT ·YA RASOOLALLAH عزوجل"

OBJECTION 1: The Holy Quran states, "Besides Allah عزوجل, do no call out to anyone who can neither grant you benefit nor inflict barm." ^5.13a. Surah Yusuf, Verse 106.

We can ascertain from this that to call out to anyone besides Auab a is prohibited and is the practice of idol-worshippers.

Answer - The word "dua" in this ayats and others like it doesn't mean to call, but 10 worship (ref. Tafseer Jalaalain and other Commentaries of the Holy Quran).

Therefore, the meaning of these ayats is that no one except Allah عزوجل should be worshipped. Other verses corroborate this meaning. Allah عزوجل states, "And who calls another to be worshipped (ma’bood) with Allah عزوجل ("calls" here meaning worship) " ^5.13b-Surah Muminoon. Verse 117.

We now understand that deeming someone besides Allah عزوجل to be Allah عزوجل and calling out to him is polytheism (shirk) because this is worship of someone woo isn't Allah عزوجل. If this meaning was not asserted to these ayats, then all oftbe extracts we have produced from the Quran, Hadith and. rulings of the Ulama wherein calling to others besides Allah عزوجل was found will all prove to be polytheism. Then calling or addressing anyone, whether near or far, alive or deceased, will all equal polytheism. We daily address and call out to qur family and friends. Therefore, there will be no one in this world free from shirk. Also, shirk is termed as ascribing a partner to Allah عزوجل in His being and qualities. So. why would calling out to or addressing someone be taken as applying DilW attributes to that person? How can this be polytheism?

OBJECTION 2: Remember Allah عزوجل sitting, standing and while restil It is known from this that to respect the name of someone besides Allah عزوجل & while sitting or standing is polytheism. Only Allah's عزوجل remembrance should be made at all intervals.

Answer - Deeming remembering Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم as Haraam or polytheism (shirk) based on this verse is ignorance. The ayat merely states that when you are finished with narnaaz, you may make Allah's عزوجل. zikr in every condition and state. In other words, namaaz has restrictions (e.g. it cannot be done without wudhu, Quran must not be recited during sajda, ruku or while sitting and that it (Salaah) should not be made sitting or lying down without a valid excuse) but when it is completed, these limitations are lifted. Now, you may make the remembrance of Allah عزوجل standing, sitting. Lying down or in any other condition.

After paying special attention to this ayat, the following points clearly emerge.

1. The imperitave "Remember Allah عزوجل is not for obligation (Wujoob) but for permissibility (jawaaz). Meaning, out of namaaz you have the choice to remember Allah عزوجل or others besides Him, or remain silent altogether. All of the above is allowed.

2. Even if this command was for obligation, still too would the remembrance of someone besides Allah عزوجل not be the abrogation of Allah's عزوجل remembrance (i.e. that by His remembrance becoming compulsory. remembering someone else besides Him becomes Haraam). Rather, the abrogation of Allah's عزوجل remembrance (zikr) is not making His remembrance at all.

3. The zikr of Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم is indirectly the remembrance of Allah عزوجل. "Whoever is obedient to the Rasoola has shown obedience to Allah عزوجل."^5.14a Surah Nisaa; Verse 80.

When the Holy Prophet’s صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم remembrance is included in the Kalima, Namaaz, Hajj, Durood, Khutba, Azaao - in short, all forms of worship and is necessary in them. how can this remembrance become Haraam if made out of Salaah, whether whilst standing or sitting? Whoever recites Durood Sharif of the Kalima while standing, sitting or in any other condition is making the zikr of Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم and is worthy of thawaab.

4. Is reciting ayats that specifically mention the Kuffaar or idols, e.g. Surah Lahah, Surah Munafiqoon, etc. the remembrance (zikr) of Allah عزوجل or not? Surely it is because these are Quranic verses. There is reward for every word. Even though the subject of these verses is the Kuffaar or idols, the speeeh (kalaam) is definitely Allah's عزوجل. The remembrance of Allah's عزوجل speech is His remembrance.

5. However, according to you, the remembrance of the Mercy. Noor and Prophet of Allah. عزوجلMuhammadur-Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم, cannot be the remembrance of Allah عزوجل How is this fair? The Holy Quran states, "Qaala Firaun." The reciter of "Qaala" attains 30 thawaab for this' and 50 for "Firaun", because the reward for every letter read is multiplied by I O. So 50 thawaab was attained from reading the name of Firaun in the Quran, but taking the name of Sayyiduna Rasoolullah, Muhammad صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم, is equal to polytheism? What kind of intelligence is this?

6. Due to being separated from Hadrat Yusuf علیہ السلام, Hadrat Yaqoob علیہ السلام used to repeat his name whether he was sitting or standing. He cried so much that his eyes became white. Likewise, when Hadrat Adam علیہ السلامwas separated from Sayyidah Hawa علیہ السلام and Imam zainul-Aabideen رضی اللہ تعالٰی عنہ from Imam Husain رضی اللہ تعالٰی عنہ they would both repeat the names of their loved ones sitting or standing. Tell us, will the ruling of polytheism (shirk) apply to them as well? If the answer is "No", why then will the lover of Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم who takes his Nabi's صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم name at every turn become a mushrik today? Day and night a businessman talks and thinks of his business, while a student repeats his lesson to memorize it. This is also the repetition of someone or something besides Allah عزوجل. Will they also be labeled as Mushriks?

Note - A debate on this topic of calling out "Ya Rasoolallah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم" occurred between Maulwi Thanaullah Amritsari and I in Deena Nagar, Punjab. Maulwi Sahib presented this very ayat. I asked him only three questions,

1. How many meanings does a command (amr) have in the Holy Quran and which one applies here?

2. Will one opposite (naqeed) becoming Waajib make the other Haraam?

3. What is the opposite of the remembrance of Allah عزوجل? Is it remembering someone besides Him, or not making His remembrance at all?

He replied, "You have brought Principles of Fiqh {Usool-e-Fiqh) and logic (Mantiq) into these questions. Both these Sciences are Innovated (Bidat)." (In other words, being an ignorant person is Sunnat, according to him). I then asked him to correctly define Innovation (Bidat), showing how gatherings of Meelad become Haraam according to him but taking out a magazine propagating the beliefs of the "Ahle-Hadith" is Sunnat. These questions still need to be answered by him (and today, remain unanswered by both him and his supporters).

OBJECTION 3: Hadrat Abdullah ibn Mas'ood رضی اللہ تعالٰی عنہ reports that the Holy Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم" taught them At-Tahiyaat in the following words, “السلام علیک ایھا النبی و رحمۃ اللہ و برکاتہ ” When the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم " passed away, we read At­-Tabiyaat in the following manner, “فلما قبض قلنا السلام علی یعنی علی النبی صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم ” Bukhari, Yol. 1, Kltaabul-Istizaan, Baabul-Akhz bil-Yadain. Imam Aini رضی اللہ تعالٰی عنہ writes under this Hadith, "The apparent meaning of this is that the Sahaaba used the 'kaat' for addressing the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم in "As-­Salaamu Alaika (Peace be upon you…..)” during his time. When he passed away, they stopped this and began to use the word for absence, saying, "As-­Salaamu alan-Nab" (peace be upon the Prophet صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم …” ^5.17- Aini Sharah Bukhari.

This Hadith and its annotation prove that "As-SaIaamu Alaika" was said in At-Tahiyaat during the time of Rasoolullah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم, but after his demise, calling out to him in it was forsaken. Thus, when the Sahaaba omitted calling out to him in At-Tahiyaat, then the person who proclaims"Ya Rasoolallah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم etc. out of Damaaz is a Musbrik indeed.